Highlights
- The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on Jan. 10, 2025, issued a Notice of Intent (NOI) to make approximately $725 million of federal funding available for new awards under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) Battery Materials Processing and Battery Manufacturing Grant Program. This funding is critical to securing a resilient battery manufacturing supply chain that bolsters the grid, national security and energy independence.
- The DOE expects to open the full Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) in spring 2025.
- Holland & Knight has successfully helped clients secure nearly $1.8 billion in awards under this program, with the last round of announcements made in September 2024.
The BIL allocated $6 billion in total for the Battery Materials Processing and Battery Manufacturing Grant Program. The program, administered by the DOE's Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC), is designed to provide grants aimed at ensuring the U.S. has a robust and viable battery supply chain. The grants seek to strengthen the nation's position in the global battery market by fostering domestic innovation, capacity building and sustainable development in materials processing, manufacturing and recycling.
In May 2024, MESC issued an Request for Information (RFI) soliciting input on critical material market dynamics. The responses highlighted the challenges experienced and various tools that the DOE could utilize to support critical materials projects. Though the NOI does not identify an Area of Interest (AOI) to address the volatility, the office acknowledged that such obstacles make it difficult for the domestic industry to realize its potential.
Anticipated Areas of Interest
It is anticipated that the funding opportunity may include the following AOIs for domestic facilities, with a focus on those that "support the energy independence of the United States through circularity and secure sourcing":
- Battery Cathode and Anode Materials. Create U.S. manufacturing and recycling capacity to produce cathode critical minerals and materials or anode materials.
- Battery Electrolyte and Electrolyte Salts. Create U.S. manufacturing capacity to produce electrolyte and/or electrolyte salts, which remain a supply chain investment gap as nearly all electrolyte salt today is sourced through foreign entity of concern (FEOC) supply chains.
- Pre-Industrial Scale Cell Manufacturing. Accelerate pathways to commercialization of new battery and domestic manufacturing equipment/machinery technologies by supporting and increasing the availability of shared-access battery production lines.
- Materials, Processing and Manufacturing Open Topics. Create U.S. manufacturing capacity to produce battery materials and components or enable process technologies such as precursors, materials processing, catalysts, binders, separators and conductive additives, as well as current collector materials, structures and treatments.
Award Information
MESC anticipates that individual awards will be between $50 million and $200 million, with a 24- to 60-month estimated period of performance. The office expects to make three to 14 awards. Furthermore, MESC encourages those interested in applying to consider identifying potential downstream domestic customers for their products.
Holland & Knight Insights
Holland & Knight anticipates numerous Day 1 executive actions to come immediately following President-Elect Donald Trump's inauguration. Though much has been reported on the future of BIL-funded programs, ultimately these programs are bipartisan, and the Holland & Knight team believes they will continue. We anticipate there to be a pause on funding opportunities as the new administration evaluates these programs to ensure alignment with its priorities; however, the incoming president has shown strong support for minerals and materials, which we believe increases the likelihood that this program will be maintained. It is imperative for companies interested in advancing this funding to actively engage with Congress and the DOE.
Holland & Knight has a seasoned and fully integrated clean energy policy and legal team that is focused on engaging with the DOE, Congress and the executive branch to help clients realize their goals. To date, the team has helped clients secure and negotiate more than $20 billion of innovative energy funding commitments from the DOE.
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